Taming a Dragon
by Ace's Shadow Girl
Summary: Every kind of NaLu short fics I can imagine... Gets updated when I feel like it. Today: Lucy lost her battle ... but who wins the war? Natsu knows!
1. Cloak

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fairy Tail, even if I love it.

**Author's note:** Spoiler for chapter 198.

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**Cloak**

Falling.

From the sky.

In full rain.

Lucy sure could imagine better things to do. Taking a bath, for example. Writing. Chatting with Mira-chan or Levy-san. Or Erza. Or even with Natsu, hell, everything was better than this! Everything!

In one moment, they were sucked from Edolas, sucked _upwards_, and in the next, they fell down from above. Obviously down to Earth again. She just hoped it to be the Earth and not another strange parallel universe.

Natsu was just some metres below, and with his strange black cloak and arms stretched out downwards, he looked like some super-hero on a mission. Even if he cried just like her, it was involuntary. And there was Happy, the flying cat, with extra emphasis on _flying_. Now he was falling like every one of them.

"KYAA!" Lucy exclaimed when she, finally, belly-landed right on Natsu's back. Her insides got squashed in the most painful way she could imagine (for the moment), and apparently it wasn't any different with the dragon slayer beneath her.

"NGAHH!" he gasped when she hit him, and she felt really sorry for him – at least, until Happy, as well as Wendy, Gray, Charle, Gazille and Erza, one after another, ended up crashing right onto her. And Natsu.

Every bit of air was squeezed out of her lungs, and she tried to gasp – or to breathe –, but it was impossible. Just as every single one was down, they slowly stood up, and with one final intake of air, Natsu yelled his joy out for the world to hear. "WE'RE BAAACK!"

Yes, they were back, and after a glance down into the valley, where Magnolia had always been, they were delighted to find everything was also back and in one piece. Lucy was on the brink to hug everyone on the spot, had not Erza's usual rationality taken her back to reality. "It's too early to celebrate. First we've got to make sure everyone's alright."

However, when the cats came flying down – _flying_, not _falling_ –, they were completely baffled.

"They're fine!" "We reached Earthland a step ahead of you …" "The guild and everyone in the town are just fine …" "We flew all over …"

_Flew_, not _fell_.

"Phew …" Lucy muttered and shook her head with a smile. She was glad that everyone survived, but also exhausted. And she started to get cold. All the rain and stuff, she surely would get sick like that, victory or not.

As she watched the Exceed fly all over them, shouting for joy that they were alive and had made it, her hands went up and down her upper arms. Not that it helped so much, though. It was still cold, and she couldn't make the water disappear.

When someone came near, she first didn't notice, but then, as something warm covered her shoulders, she flinched in surprise. Warm and really comfortable. "Huh?" she uttered in confusion and turned her head, only to see Natsu standing next to her, showing a smile. "I thought you'd get cold in the rain. I don't need it."

"Uhh …" She looked down at the black cloak he had draped over her shoulders. Of course, he was the fire dragon slayer and had no problems with the cold, but she hadn't actually expected him to notice her. Or, to be so gentleman-like and help her out. That was just extremely cute.

"Thank you," she said, suppressing the sudden compulsion to take him into a hug, and smiled up to him. And when he smiled back, suddenly, the world was much warmer than before.

This guy always managed to surprise her anew.

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**Author's note:** I came across that when, later in that chapter, Lucy wore a black cloak and I thought: huh? How did she get this? And when I saw Natsu in one of the next pics, without his cloak, my mind worked by itself, and that's the result. Hope you enjoyed my first FT fic.

Oh, and as to the names, I learned them like this and Gazille is Gazille and not _Gajeel_ to me. So.


	2. Depression

**Disclaimer:** I still do not own Fairy Tail ...

**Author's note: **Spoiler warning for chapters 206 and 207!

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**Depression**

"_**From here on out, I'm talking to you not as a supervisor, but as a friend."**_

The words rang in his head.

"_**Powerful magic isn't everything about a man."**_

_Elfman surely would agree with that_, he snorted.

"_**But I understand your desire to win."**_

Yeah, who would not?

"_**This has nothing to do with age or career … I'm the same as you, you know."**_

_Yeah … I know. _

"_**I don't want to lose to you."**_

_I wouldn't want that either. _

"_**I'll fight you again anytime. Now go become an S-class, Natsu!"**_

Natsu shifted on the rock where he sat. He couldn't get it out of his head. He had lost, and that was all he could think about. He had lost, and yet he had won. He understood Gildartz' motives for letting him pass, and yet …

He had never been one to deal with defeats. Usually, he won.

"Hey! Natsu!", someone pulled him out of his thoughts, and he closed his eyes. She was really the last person he wanted to see now … okay, apart from Gray, perhaps. No, not apart from Gray. The absolutely last person he wanted to see him in _this_ state.

"Natsu, what …" she started, but Happy understood and flew over to her. "He's just out of his battle with Gildartz," he overheard his little Exceed friend's saying, and Lucy, as well as Kana, gasped. "He's _what?_"

"Perhaps you should just leave him alone …" Happy advised her.

_Yeah, leave me alone. _

"Oh …" Kana breathed, but he heard steps coming in his direction and suppressed a groan. He should have known.

"Hey …" she said quietly, and a feathery weight was lain on his shoulder. Feathery, but heavy to him.

"Hey," he growled, on the brink to just saying: "Get off!", or worse.

Gray, maybe, but Lucy? He really didn't want her around now …

"Now that's not the face of someone who just came out of a fight with Gildartz in one piece …" she said, and he could hear her move. She bent down to look in his face. He couldn't allow that. But at the same time, he couldn't be rude to her. He just couldn't.

So he raised his head to meet her eyes with an angry glare, and as he did, her expression changed from a soft smile to something alike to shock, and then, slowly, back to the smile again.

"I see …" she said and sat down next to him.

Why couldn't she just go away? She really was the last person he wanted to talk to at the moment. Ah, no, he forgot Gazille.

"Natsu, it's okay to … lose … sometimes," she told him, and he flinched. How could she know? Oh, perhaps because he sat there, looking like a picture of misery. He clenched his teeth as she laid her hand on his, it really hurt now. Why couldn't she go away?

"Look, next time it'll be different," she went on. "Next time you'll beat him …"

He didn't want to reply to this, but his mouth had developed a life on its own. "You think so?"

And as he looked at her, he saw her eyes widen slightly. "Natsu, … of course! You're not the one to doubt, you've never been! Please leave that part to me …"

He couldn't help smiling.

She chuckled. "Really, it's okay. It's rather a masterly performance to get out of that without any serious injuries. If there's someone who can defeat him, then it's you, Natsu."

If she said it like this, he could believe it better. If she only knew what she did to him …

"Smile," she said, pecking him on the cheek. Good that Happy didn't see this, Natsu surely could go without another "You're sooo together!" rant of his little friend.

When she stood up, she patted him on the shoulder, smiling down at him. "Levy's come. I'll go to her."

Natsu nodded, somehow dazed. His cheek burned.

"And don't forget. It's you, Natsu."

He nodded again, watching her as she made her way to Levy and Gazille, one smiling, the other rather pissed because of the calm route they had gotten.

He touched his cheek.

It was strange how Lucy could always change his point of view on things.

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**Author's note:** Yay, another NaLu for you! Hope you enjoyed. And I also hope it was not too OOC, that was my version of Natsu in love with Lucy … :-)

Aww, and the latest chapter, it's just soooo awwww! I think I fell in love with Levy and Gazille ... *sigh*


	3. In Need

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fairy Tail … because if I did, Lucy and Natsu would be SOOOO TOGETHER by now.

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**In Need**

Lucy stood in front of the request board, frowning at all the heavily paid, but equally heavily dangerous tasks. Kill a bloodthirsty ghost, search a piece of jewellery in a haunted house, take down a dark mage … the list was endless. And endless was her gloominess.

"Lucy, what's up?" a well-known voice pulled her out of her thoughts, and her pink-haired, fire-breathing friend came up next to her, grinning. He was cheery, obviously. Good for him, she thought as she frowned back at the board. "I need money to pay my rent next month … but I can't do one of these alone. I think I'll need you or Erza or Gray to accompany me, if you're okay with it …"

She didn't see him scowl at her, but as he raised his voice, she winced in surprise.

"I'm so tired of this!" he exclaimed, and as she looked at him, she was shocked by the angry glare she earned from the usually so joyous dragon slayer. "N-Natsu? What …?" she asked him, her brows cocked in disbelief.

"Stop acting like you're a damn damsel in distress!" he snarled. "I know you, and you can take care of yourself very well!"

"But … Natsu … I'm not that strong … you have to know that, too …" she uttered, incredulously eyeing her friend literally fuming with anger.

"That's so not true!" he exclaimed. "You've fought so many battles, and if they hadn't been successful, well, you wouldn't be here right now and ask dumb annoying questions!"

Lucy's eyebrows almost disappeared into her hairline. Now he had some nerve, calling her _dumb and annoying_ … "Natsu …"

He took her upper arm in an iron grip and stared right in her amber eyes with his pitch-black ones, sparkling with passion. "Lucy, stop this. You know damn well you _need_ nobody to protect you. You're a mage of Fairy Tail, after all!"

Lucy gulped. His look was so serious, and she believed to see something in his eyes, other than rage. But that must have been her imagination. She had always liked his eyes, they were so vivid. She could drown in those eyes.

She didn't know what had induced his burst of temper in the first place, and now he was cooling down again. But his point was clear like water. Perhaps she should really start to believe him.

Slowly, she turned back to the board, and Natsu let go of her arm. "Okay," she said quietly. "Then, may I ask you to accompany me because I want you to, because you're my friend and I like you?"

He said nothing for a few moments, while her eyes were glued to a random request note.

"Yes, you may ask," he finally said, "and I'd love to accompany you."

A comfortable silence settled over them while they both smiled at the request board.

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**Author's note:** Well, what nice ideas I get when jogging. I should do it more often^^


	4. Waiting

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fairy Tail.**  
**

**Author's note: **Warning – spoiler for chapter 212's special.

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**Waiting**

"What … is … this?"

I really couldn't think of anything to say. This mess … it looked like a dumping ground. And one of the worst I'd ever seen at that.

To think that one could actually live in this chaos … well, that was unthinkable.

I stood there, indecisive whether to enter or to stay out and do as if I'd never seen this. It was just so … "Gross!"

Dirty dishes everywhere, not just in the sink (did they even have one? I couldn't see it). Torn blankets and towels draped over furniture. An overturned wardrobe. Barrels to sit on. Sofas stained with things I'd better not imagine. And broken toys everywhere in the room.

"They're actually living in this squalor?" I muttered. "It's such a mess!"

I cautiously stepped into the room, careful to avoid all those things lying on the floor – which was rather difficult, for almost everything was lying on the floor, making the room inaccessible. "Ouch!" I yelled out when my foot made acquaintance with a mega dumbbell in a painful way, and even the sight of a broken and battered wooden training dummy titled "Erza" didn't make it any better.

_Damn you, Natsu_, I thought by myself. The thought that I wasn't here because of an invitation but because I was just committing trespass didn't cross my mind as I looked around, trying to orientate.

"Hm?" I uttered when my glance fell on the wall pasted up with posters behind the scrappy hammock, and dared to make a few more steps in this direction. "Are these all the jobs he's done so far?" I asked myself, feeling impressed. Those were really many posters.

"Ah!" I said when I spotted the Everloo quest poster, the first quest I had done as a member of Fairy Tail. It was nothing compared to all the things that had happened until now, but still. It was my first Fairy Tail quest.

There was a little scrap of paper pinned to it, and I narrowed my eyes to read it. "The quest I performed with LUCY for the first time!" it said, and I bit my lip in surprise. He remembered … he really thought of this … my first quest, and it had been with him. He still remembered, and that was not just kind of unexpected, but also overwhelmingly and incredibly cute of him. I felt my heart beating faster as my throat got dry all of a sudden. I averted my eyes from that cuteness and looked at another item, for I just couldn't stand it, I don't know why.

It was a framed piece of paper with a dagger stuck in it and a scrap saying "Fake Salamander's signature". Oh, I remembered that one.

The next one … "Rubble from the meeting hall". "A souvenir from Garuna Island". And then, a clothes-stand with a black and white dress on it, a dress I immediately recognised, my eyes wide as saucers. I didn't have to read the label to know it was the maiden outfit I had worn when we had been at the Everloo quest.

I hadn't known he still had it. I didn't even know where he had it from. I only knew that I suddenly had a large lump in my throat, feeling so sentimental I could have cried on the spot. He had saved it, he had saved it all.

Natsu had always been so … idiotic and stuff, but seeing this here made me think over him anew. Actually, it fit his personality. He was chaotic and crazy and unpredictable, just like this room. But then, he also was sweet and caring and loving … sometimes, at least. Like these things, like flowers amidst the chaos.

"They're taking surprisingly good care of items that hold memories …" I whispered, audible to nobody but me. This, this was just cute. And I felt the urge to do something for him, for them both.

"Alright! I guess I'll do some cleaning before they get home then."

It just didn't feel right to leave like this, or to continue my previous plan of scaring them to hell. I had to do something. He had just proven to me that he deeply cared for our friendship, and now I would do the same for him.

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_Three hours of cleaning and scru__bbing and polishing and one shiny room later …_

"They still aren't back yet?" I mumbled, sitting on the floor that looked like you could eat from it. Sure, I was happy they didn't barge in when I had been at it, but now they could come. Now it was ready.

But they didn't come. I waited … and waited … and waited …

_They're probably at the guild, having fun. _

"Just when I thought I could finally surprise them! What are they doing?" I yelled, threw myself on the floor and punched and kicked it with my fists and feet, feeling awkwardly like a little child.

_I feel so empty … Does waiting for someone to come home always feel this lonely?_

Then Natsu and Happy must have experienced it quite a few times. I smiled sadly at that thought and got up slowly. First I had thought I could surprise them like they always managed to surprise me – in this 'barging-in-when-I-was-dressing' or 'sitting-unexpected-in-my-bathtub' way. Then I wanted to surprise them with a neat, shiny home … but they didn't come. It hadn't worked, I had to admit, and wiped a tear away from my cheek. "I'm leaving."

At least they'd see the house when they came home, even if I wouldn't be able to see their faces then.

Slowly trotting back to my home, all the way fighting the tears from pouring out of my eyes, I thought of how much I felt for him, this stupid idiot with his stupid scarf and his stupid cat and his stupid pink hair … He was my friend, and I loved him. Of course I did. Even if he was reckless, stupid, thoughtless, stupid …

Smiling, I opened the door to my room – and got the surprise of my life.

"So they were in my room after all!" it escaped me when I saw a certain pink-haired scarf-wearing guy sitting on the floor next to a certain blue cat, leaning on to my bed. They were sleeping, and damn they looked cute like this, even if their snores could've woken the whole town. They had barged in here again, even if they knew how I hated that …

"Lucy … come home already …" Natsu muttered in his sleep, scratching his stomach, followed by an "Aye!" from Happy.

… but now I knew what it meant to wait for someone. They just wanted to surprise me, and deep inside, I was grateful for every single unwanted visit they paid me. They wanted to be here, with me, and it touched me deeply.

Still smiling like an idiot, feeling one thousand butterflies in my belly, I turned around and looked for a blanket to cover them. It wasn't like Natsu could catch a cold, but Happy could, and it was more comfortable; surely he could feel that too.

Just when I wanted to drape the piece of cloth over them, Natsu gave a sigh and, completely out of the blue, pulled me in a tight embrace – which almost made me shriek in surprise. "Lucy …" he muttered and sighed again, nuzzling his face into my neck. "You're home …"

My eyes grew wide when I recognised that he was still sleeping, holding me like a cuddly pet (or a lover), pressing me against his chest and cradling me in his arms, almost taking my air away. Even when I tried to get free, I didn't succeed a bit. I never realised how strong he was – which was silly, because I had seen him smashing usually un-smashable things on several occasions after all.

After I had struggled like that for a couple of minutes, I gave up, deciding I could just as well sleep here – since I didn't have much of a choice. Leaning my head against his shoulder and scrambling up into his lap, I found that it was surprisingly comfortable up here. He smelled a bit like fire (oh wonder), and somehow, it calmed me. It made me feel safe, like he always did. He always had this effect on me.

With one last "Aye" from Happy, I felt myself drifting off to sleep, the smile never leaving my face.

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**Author's note:** I had this on my mind since last week already, and now I finally found the time to actually write it down. Hope you liked it.


	5. Gift

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fairy Tail.**  
**

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**Gift**

"Heya all! We're back!"

A gleeful shout filled the main room of Fairy Tail's guild home, and every pair of eyes momentarily in there shifted to the door and the persons who were just coming in.

"Natsu! Erza! Gray! I'm glad you're home!" Mirajane greeted them, and Lisanna, who sat at the counter, nodded her agreement, grinning in successful imitation of the young dragon slayer's face.

"It's been one hell of an adventure," Gray mumbled and stepped aside, trying to avoid a certain water woman's advances, namely a passionate hug.

"Yeah, certainly," Erza agreed and made her way to the counter, where Lucy was sitting next to Mirajane's sister. She looked rather gloomy. "Lucy, we're back," she announced and tried to awaken the younger woman's interest – but futile. Lucy merely humphed and turned her head away from her red-haired friend's gaze, putting her head up on a hand, her arm propped at the countertop.

"Lucy?"

"Yeah, you're back. Woo-hoo," the blonde said, pointedly dismissive.

Erza shifted from one foot to the other, casting a frown her way. "Listen, Lucy. I know it wasn't that cool of us to go without you, but we have to pay our rents, too …"

Lucy sent her a rather demonic glance, and the girl known as Erza the Titania almost flinched. "Your rents? You live in the guild's dormitory! You've to pay a lot less that I do!"

"We told you to split it up between us four …"

"That changes nothing!" Lucy exclaimed, punching the countertop with her fist, so hard that Lisanna hurried to get somewhere else. Mirajane just smiled, like she always did. "You went without me, and I won't forgive you!"

"Look. With your injury, you couldn't have gone anywhere, and that job just had to be done, Master told me to …" Erza explained but resigned when her interlocutress just grabbed her crutches and started to limp away.

"I don't care, Erza! I just don't …"

"LUCY!"

She was interrupted when something … somebody flew in her direction, and she found herself lying on the floor in no time, all the guild members smiling and grinning at her.

"Natsu!" she yelled and pushed him off, her face as red as a tomato. Didn't it suffice that they had obviously had fun without her? Now that dumbass also had to attack her in the middle of the guild, and nobody did a thing!

"Ah, I'm sorry," the pink-haired boy grinned and scratched his neck when he saw her struggling to get up clumsily. "Wait, I'll …"

He didn't get any further, because the next flying object now met her straight in the face. "Ugh!"

"Luuucyyy!" Happy whined, hugging her cheeks as he clung to her nose. "We missed you so much!"

"Happy … get … off!" she screamed, pulling the blue Exceed off her face. "Now that's exaggerated!"

But when she saw the tears streaming down his little face, she forgot why she was angry … almost. She resisted the urge to hug him and set him down on the floor next to her. "Your own fault. You were going without me," she said coldly.

"Whatcha doing on the floor?" Gray asked as he appeared in front of her, taking her by the shoulders and starting to lift her up. Lucy didn't really know whether to shout at him for his damned ignorance or to be scared – because of the stares Lluvia started to direct to her.

"By the way, this idiot," Gray pointed at Natsu, "has something for you."

"Huh?" she asked and looked at her scarf-wearing friend, anger forgotten. What could it possibly be that Natsu had for her? And when she noticed his getting as red as she had been just one minute earlier, she was even more confused.

"Yes. He annoyed us with that all the way home. 'Do you think Lucy's gonna like it?' 'What do you think is Lucy's reaction gonna be?' 'Do you think she's gonna forgive us when I give it to her?'" Erza smirked and ignored the dragon slayer's death glare.

Lucy looked at him again, brows furrowed in confusion. "Natsu?"

"Uhh, yes," he muttered and played with his fingers.

"Now give it to her so that we can see her reaction and can go home already," Gray sighed.

An expectant silence settled over the room, everyone trying to get a better view as Natsu fiddled around in his pockets to pull something out of it. With his blush now fierce he handed it over to Lucy who took it in surprise. "Here," he mumbled and wanted to dart off, but Erza grasped him by the collar and pulled him back.

"Isn't that what you wanted to see?" she scolded him.

Lucy didn't notice any of this as she opened the plain little bag in her hand. She removed the cord and tipped it over, and a little thing fell into her hand. It was a bracelet, at least it looked like one, with its clumsily braided laces and the flat grey stone attached to them.

She cocked her head and took it up on one of its strings. "A bracelet?" she guessed.

Natsu tried to look unaffected as he asked, "You like it?"

"Where did you get that?" she asked back.

"The stone is from the castle we brought to collapse," Erza informed her. "Natsu made it himself. He though you wouldn't be sad if we brought you something to remember it, even if you weren't there with us."

Lucy's eyes got wide as saucers as she looked at him. "Really?"

He nodded, avoiding her gaze.

Lucy looked back at the item in her hand before smiling slowly. "Then I like it." She looked around in confusion as the whole guild started to cheer, and Natsu still as red as couldn't possibly be healthy. She decided to just ignore them all and reached the bracelet out to Erza. "Can you fix it?"

The moment Erza let go of Natsu, he was off I a flash, and Happy with him. Lucy looked after them as she waited for Erza to attach the bracelet to her arm. "Should I understand that?" she asked nobody in particular, and Erza chuckled.

"There you go."

Lucy smiled at the clumsily-made piece of jewellery, and decided to wear it every day from now on.

* * *

_The next day_

"Hey," she greeted when she opened the door to his house. He hadn't been there when she had gotten home yesterday night, so she had decided to look for him.

"Lucy?" he asked, obviously surprised. She saw how his eyes shifted to her arm, and smiled when he blushed.

"Uh, yeah. I kinda missed you last night …" She immediately went crimson when the double meaning of her last utterance dawned on her. "Uh, no, not like that, I just mean … uh … you weren't at my home, so I came." She made a hesitant step into the room. "And, well, here I am."

She didn't know if there was a reason to act all stupid and embarrassed now, but she couldn't help it.

"Uhh … yeah. Want some tea?" Natsu asked, with Happy immediately flying over to their 'kitchen', muttering "We have a guest! We have a guest!"

"I'd love to," she finally smiled and closed the door behind her. When they were seated around the table (Surprisingly, it had still been orderly and clean in here from when she had cleaned it up), Lucy took up the arm with the bracelet. "I think I didn't have the possibility to thank you yet," she said and he grinned into his teapot. "Really, Natsu, this means a lot to me. Thank you."

This time, she gave in to the urge and hugged him, and he almost spilled his tea all over the place.

"And yes, I forgive you," she whispered in his ear.

Natsu smiled as he started to hug her back. From the corner of his eye, he saw his little winged friend watching them curiously.

"You're sooo together …"

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**Author's note:** Hey, I think you've already guessed it. Natsu's OOC because he's all lovey-dovey with Lucy. But what must be, must be. It's more than I originally intended … and it has come out different. But I hope you enjoyed it nevertheless.

Ah, one thing. I call Lluvia Lluvia because everything else wouldn't make sense. "lluvia" is Spanish for "rain", and if that doesn't fit, then nothing does.


	6. Sleepover

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fairy Tail.

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**Sleepover**

Lucy yawned when she entered her little house. This had been one hell of a day … and to top it off, the guys had started a fight in the Guild building once again. She had been so busy with evading beer mugs and benches being thrown through the air that she hadn't noticed how tired she was. But now that she was home, her bed was waiting for her and she just needed to get ready and snuck between the soft sheets.

The thought made her frown a bit. She hadn't seen Natsu anywhere, which was weird since he never avoided chances for a good fight. And she also wondered what he was possibly doing … without telling her.

Not that it was unusual. But she had noticed that lately, every time he went away without her, she hoped he would be back soon. Weird.

Ah, why was she thinking about the jerk anyway? She had just thought about getting ready to go to bed. Since when were the terms "Natsu" and "bed" so connected in her brain? It wasn't as if he was there every time she came home …

… but almost.

She went to her bathroom and brushed her teeth, then unfastened her scrunchie and combed her hair. Because of a certain hothead being used to sneaking in her room, she had developed the habit of storing her pajamas in the bathroom, just in case. She didn't want that one time when she had stood stock naked before him to happen again.

_Not today, anyhow_, she thought sadly. Wait … did she actually miss the idiot?

Not willing to resist her bed's call any longer, Lucy went into the bedroom and stretched one last time before tiredly climbing into the bed and pulling the sheets up until her ears, ready to lead the way into Dreamland as she positioned herself …

… and found a resistance.

Raising her head, she took the blanket next to her and tugged at it … only to see tufts of pink and blue hair peeking out from under it. Natsu was facing her in his sleep, his face peaceful and Happy lying on his head, and Lucy couldn't help but smile.

Happily snuggling into his sleeping form under the sheets, she buried her face in the pillow just inches away from his nose.

So that was where he had been, huh?

She enjoyed every time of seeing him like that. Because she would never tell him … but she loved how cute he looked when he was asleep.

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**Author's note:** Yay! Did you see the latest FT chapter? Now that's what I wanted to see! I see more NaLu coming this way … YAY!


	7. Drowning

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fairy Tail.

******Author's note:** I had this written for a long time and completely forgot about it! Anyway, spoiler warning for chapter 272. And did you see Natsu having his arm around Lucy and her touching his chest in chapter 275? Awww, and Levy is hugging Gajeel to keep him from going at Laxus, so cute! I was completely squealing around when I saw it.

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**Drowning**

It was an ocean of feelings.

And she was drowning in it.

They were welling up within her, and she couldn't do anything. Because she had lost.

She had lost.

She still couldn't believe what had just happened. She had been good. She had been great. Dammit, she had been awesome! At the peak of her powers! Unbelievable! And then …

Yeah, then what?

_Nothing. _

Nothing had happened, leaving her crushed on the ground, empty, lost, powerless, and incredulous.

_Lost. I lost. Lost. Lost. Lost …_

The word repeated in her mind, over and over. And she still couldn't believe it. It was like a cruel choir was chanting the words, _lost, you've lost,_ and the ocean drew her in, slowly, but steadily. It sucked at her feet, crept up her ankles, shins, thighs, over her hips and waist, to her breasts and above, until it was at her chin, threatening to overwhelm and drown her. She tried to raise her arms, or to move in any kind of way – she could swim, after all –, but she couldn't.

The water was so thick with feelings that she couldn't even identify them. If she could, she would have recognised helplessness, a lot of helplessness. Anger. Despair. Pain. Confusion. Anguish. Grief. Distress. Misery.

And fear. Pure, overpowering fear.

It was so simple. She had always known it. It had been her constant companion in the last few years. It was always there, and she couldn't turn it off. It was a part of her. A mighty, heavy, dark part of her.

She had been living in constant fear that with all her friends and fellow guild members being so powerful, she would be left behind sooner or later.

And now, now that she had lost her fight, lost the greatest chance of proving herself worthy and saving her beloved guild from its bad reputation, now the time had come. It didn't even matter that everyone could see it, could see her defeat.

She wasn't worth it anymore.

Had she ever been worth it? She didn't know. From the beginning, she had always been weak. And now everybody could see it, because she had lost. She didn't even know why, but it sure had to do with her weakness, with her inability to do something useful, with her uselessness ...

And she couldn't stop the sobs that were racking her body as she lay on the ground, tears wetting the earth below her. And everybody could see.

"Don't cry, Lucy."

The voice filtered through her haze of overwhelming feelings. She knew that voice. She loved that voice. Even he had now seen her like this, a complete loser.

"But ... it's so bitter," she sobbed, still covering her eyes with her hand. She didn't really want to look up to him, see him staring at her with disapproving eyes ...

_Wait a second. This is Natsu, right? He would never ..._

Lucy hesitatingly lifted her hand and blinked up to him through her tears. And of course he wasn't looking at her from disapproving eyes, no ... he was grinning.

"Let's save the tears for when we win," he said, and through his words, she could hear his incredible will, his stubbornness to give up, his unsubdued fighting spirit. And she knew instantly that she was being irrational. Her guild, her friends, _he_ would never see her as useless.

She took her hands up to wipe away her tears, but it was useless. They just kept coming. But suddenly, it was alright. Through the tears, she saw the hand that had been outstretched towards her, and she grabbed it as if it was a lifeline. And it was, at that moment. Natsu was her sun. He was so bright you just had to believe, in everything. In yourself. And although she knew that she had still lost, and still felt it as a shame, from the moment she took his hand she also knew that it was okay.

"You were amazing! Thanks to you, we realised that we could fight in this world," she heard him say, and couldn't help but smile a little. "Zero points? That makes things interesting, right? We'll turn the tide now!" She felt his boundless optimism flow into her through their connected hands, and when she looked up, his grin made her feel warm inside. Natsu had always had that effect on her, but never had she needed it so much as she did now.

"Yeah," she sniffled and her eyes sought him out, took him as their anchor. And the words came to her all by themselves, because this was Natsu, the person to whom she owed everything. "I'm all fired up."

She had lost, right. But next time she'd win.


End file.
